Washing a pet's fur can be a laborious process. An animal's coat tends to accumulate dirt and other particulates, which get entangled and matted into the fur. For this reason it is ordinarily not sufficient to merely impinge water upon their coat, but instead some sort of scrubbing is required to loosen and release the dirt and other particulates which have become entangled in the pet's fur.
Various devices for cleaning a pet's fur that allow for simultaneous scrubbing and application of a cleaning fluid and/or water have existed within the prior art. U.S. Pat. No. 5,722,349 to Wolgamuth, for example, is directed to a hand pet washing system that includes at least one resilient rubber glove, a rubber tubing secured to the glove for carrying soap and water for washing, and a valve secured at the end of the tubing for controlling the soap and water flow. The hand pet washing system disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,722,349 is for facilitating washing of an animal without the user being in personal contact with harsh shampoos utilized on the animal.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,109,214 to Rampersad discloses a pet grooming mitt. The mitt has a built-in reservoir with discharge ports and massage nibs for pet grooming.
In U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2006/0153625, a pet bathing product for shampooing or bathing pets is described. The device includes a distribution head that is attached to a hose. The device further includes an additive reservoir that allows for the sudsing of a pet coat directly through the product.
Various fluid flow apparatuses are also disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,836,702, U.S. Pat. No. 4,991,314, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,297,739, which are all incorporated herein by reference. The '739 patent, for instance, discloses an apparatus and process for impinging a fluid upon an object to be treated. A generally conical-shaped flow of fluid is directed against an object to be treated. More particularly, the object to be treated is located so that fluid impinging on the object reflects upwardly and has a lifting effect on filamentary material, such as hair, bristles, or fibers. In one embodiment, the device disclosed in the '739 patent is incorporated into a blow dryer. Such devices have shown great commercial success and have provided many advancements in the art.
A need still remains, however, for a device that is particularly well suited to washing a fibrous or filamentary material, such as the fur of an animal.